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a/src/0058.pm b/src/0058.pm index 530fd9f..8994e5c 100644 --- a/src/0058.pm +++ b/src/0058.pm @@ -52,7 +52,7 @@ also bound to cry for the great work that is in hand in this land, in building the ruined house of God again. And when we began to cry for this, the Lord was coming towards us; he was renting his heavens, and stretching out his mighty hand for our help. Now if we shall faint in our prayers, and haunt not the exercises of his worship, (whilk(which may be seen among you this day,) then the Lord shall withdraw his helping hand from us, and shall leave us in a more duleful case than we were in at the first. And therefore let us now fall down before the Lord our God, and beseech him that he would pity us, and help us, and yet
a/src/0058.pm b/src/0058.pm index 7b80d2b..530fd9f 100644 --- a/src/0058.pm +++ b/src/0058.pm @@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ are closed up from crying, and our hands faint, and fall down from doing any more. ◊ref{Judg.3.14-Judg.3.15}, as it is written there, the people of Israel were in thraldom to Eglon, King of Moab, eighteen years; but so soon as they cried unto, the Lord, the Lord raised up Ehud to be a judge and a deliverer to them: and so ye see, ◊scottish{als#as|also}as soon as they cried to the Lord, the Lord put to his hand to help them. And there is no question but in the very beginning of the eighteen years, a people who formerly had the experience of liberty, in the sense of this their captivity, even then they behoved to make a moan to God,
a/src/0058.pm b/src/0058.pm index 0c21a45..7b80d2b 100644 --- a/src/0058.pm +++ b/src/0058.pm @@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ are closed up from crying, and our hands faint, and fall down from doing any more. ◊ref{Judg.3.14-Judg.3.15}, as it is written there, the people of Israel were in thraldom to Eglon, King of Moab, eighteen years; but so soon as they cried unto, the Lord, the Lord raised up Ehud to be a judge and a deliverer to them: and so ye see, als◊scottish{als#as|also} soon as they cried to the Lord, the Lord put to his hand to help them. And there is no question but in the very beginning of the eighteen years, a people who formerly had the experience of liberty, in the sense of this their captivity, even then they behoved to make a moan to God, @@ -34,7 +34,7 @@ hearts are like green timber, that will not burn except it be aye blown at; and whenever it ceases to be blown at, then it dies out. Even so is it with us; except the Lord exercise us in afflictions, and continue in exercising us with them, then incontinent our hearts grows careless and coldrife in crying to God: and when the Lord takes affoff his afflicting hand, then the little spunk of fervency that before we had in crying to God, it becomes to be scarce discernible. It is a strange thing, albeit the Lord has threatened us with judgments, and we have seen them approaching very near to have seized upon us, @@ -51,9 +51,9 @@ for the comfort of our own soul, and for the pardon of our sins; but we are also bound to cry for the great work that is in hand in this land, in building the ruined house of God again. And when we began to cry for this, the Lord was coming towards us; he was renting his heavens, and stretching out his mighty hand for our help. Now if we sallshall faint in our prayers, and haunt not the exercises of his worship, (whilk may be seen among you this day,) then the Lord sallshall withdraw his helping hand from us, and sallshall leave us in a more duleful case than we were in at the first. And therefore let us now fall down before the Lord our God, and beseech him that he would pity us, and help us, and yet go on into the good work that he has begun amongst us, till it be perfected.
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We have no comfort to look for but according to the promise of God, and God has promised no comfort to us except we depend upon him for it, and testify our dependence upon him by calling upon his name,---except we be earnest in prayer, except we be fervent, and except we continue and endure in calling upon the name of God. Could we cry to the Lord, and cry constantly to him, either for deliverance from any ills, or for communication of any good, and that either temporal or spiritual, then the Lord, he would open the rich and plentiful treasures of his grace, and of his goodness, and give abundantly to us. Alas! in the day of our affliction we seem to do somewhat of this kind: but whenever we see any appearance of deliverance and outgate, then incontinent our mouths are closed up from crying, and our hands faint, and fall down from doing any more. ◊ref{Judg.3.14-Judg.3.15}, as it is written there, the people of Israel were in thraldom to Eglon, King of Moab, eighteen years; but so soon as they cried unto, the Lord, the Lord raised up Ehud to be a judge and a deliverer to them: and so ye see, als soon as they cried to the Lord, the Lord put to his hand to help them. And there is no question but in the very beginning of the eighteen years, a people who formerly had the experience of liberty, in the sense of this their captivity, even then they behoved to make a moan to God, and groaned to him; but they cried not to him: and no but they spake to him (for it is not the extending of the voice that 1 mean), but they cried not to him in the earnestness of their heart. And all the time before the eighteen years were expired, they have been wishing to be delivered; but their affliction has not been sensible enough to them. It is long before affliction become impungent to us, that we will cry earnestly to the Lord for relief of it: and it is only affliction that makes us to cry to God; and we never cry @@ -56,4 +56,4 @@ exercises of his worship, (whilk may be seen among you this day,) then the Lord sall withdraw his helping hand from us, and sall leave us in a more duleful case than we were in at the first. And therefore let us now fall down before the Lord our God, and beseech him that he would pity us, and help us, and yet go on into the good work that he has begun amongst us, till it be perfected.
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MAY 20, 1638. [ForENOON. ] PREFACE.
We have no comfort to look for but according to the promise of God, and God has promised no comfort to us except we depend upon him for it, and testify our dependence upon him by calling upon his name,--- exceptname,---except we be earnest in prayer, except we be fervent, and except we continue and endure in calling upon the name of God. Could we cry to the Lord, and cry constantly to him, either for deliverance from any ills, or for communication of any good, and that @@ -20,959 +11,49 @@ plentiful treasures of his grace, and of his goodness, and give abundantly to us. Alas! in the day of our affliction we seem to do somewhat of this kind: but whenever we see any appearance of deliverance and outgate, then incontinent our mouths are closed up from crying, and our hands faint, and fall down from doing any more. Judges iii.,*◊ref{Judg.3.14-Judg.3.15}, as it is written there, the people of Israel were in thraldom to Eglon, King of Moab, eighteen years; but so soon as they cried unto, the Lord, the Lord raised up Ehud to be a judge and a deliverer to them: and so ye see, als soon as they cried to the Lord, the Lord put to his hand to help them. And there is no question but in the very beginning of the eighteen years, a people who formerly had the experience of liberty, in the sense of this their captivity, even then they behoved to make a moan to God, and groaned to him; but they cried not to him: and no but they spake to him (for it 1sis not the extend * Versesi14, I5.
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PREFACE. 823
ingextending of the voice that 1 mean), but they cried not to him in the earnestness of their heart. And all the time before the eighteen years were expired, they have been wishing to be delivered; but their affliction has not been sensible enough to them. It is long before affliction become impungent to us, that we will cry earnestly to the Lord for relief of it: and it is only affliction that makes us to cry to God; and we never cry earnestly to the Lord in affliction whill (till) we see we can do no better. It is marked of the Athenians, that they never proponed conditions of peace to any people about them but in mourning apparel; that is, when they could do no better, then they procured (negotiated) for peace. Surely so it is with us: we never cry earnestly to God but while we are in affliction and in trouble. Our hearts are like green timber, that will not burn except it be aye blown at; and whenever it ceases to be blown at, then it dies out. Even so is it with us; except the Lord exercise us in afflictions, and continue in exercising us with them, then incontinent our hearts grows careless and coldrife in crying to God: and when the Lord takes aff his afflicting hand, then the little spunk of fervency that before we had in crying to God, it becomes to be scarce discernible. It is a strange thing, albeit the Lord has threatened us with judgments, and we have seen them approaching very near to have seized upon us, yet if we begin to see any little appearance of their removing, although we cannot certify ourselves of it, yet incontinent we fail in our crying to the Lord. And this, indeed, makes the Lord ofttimes to interrupt the work that he had begun, and to stand still there; or otherwise, to turn back again. When we cry to the Lord earnestly and constantly, then he goes on; but when we fail in our crying to him, then he stands still there, or turns his back on us, and lets us go where we were, and rather worse.
I say this for this end, that every one of us are bound to cry to God, not only for the comfort of our own soul, and for the pardon of our sins; but we are also bound to cry for the great work that is in hand in this land, in building the ruined house of God again. And when we began to cry for this, the Lord was coming towards us; he was- [ ] Completed?
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324 SERMON. renting his heavens, and stretching out his mighty hand for our help. Now if we sall faint in our prayers, and haunt not the exercises of his worship, (whilk may be seen among you this day,) then the Lord sall withdraw his helping hand from us, and sall leave us in a more duleful case than we were in at the first. And therefore let us now fall down before the Lord our God, and beseech him that he would pity us, and help us, and yet go on into the good work that he has begun amongst us, till it be perfected.SERMON. Esi e XL i ool ®
Both the word of God, and everywhere almost the continual experience of God's providence and of his dealing towards his kirk and people, makes this to be manifest and clearly seen to be true, that the godly, while they are here, are subject to many distresses in the world,---to trouble, persecution, contempt, reproach, and scornings of the worldly and natural man, and of wicked men. And therefore, seeing it is so, we had need of strong consolation against so great and so grievous a tentation as this is, and to know how to be freed, and to be conquerors over all these. As, indeed, it has ever pleased the Lord yet to deal with his kirk, that for every horn that has exalted itself against her, the Lord has letten us see a hammer to beat it down.
We have here set down, in this Psalm, a general rule both for the kirk of God, and for every child of God, to be used by every one of them in their trouble, distress, grief, and vexation by the world. There is no remeid (help) for us: then, although indeed we may and ought daily to cast down our eyes for our sins, whilk we commit against God,
¥ « Unto thee lift T up mine eyes, O thou that dwellest in the heavens. Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress; so our eyes wait upon the Lord our God, until that he have mercy upon us."
= Zik
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PSALM CXXIII. I, 2. 325
yet in respect of our troubles by the wicked in the world, let us lift up our eyes confidently to God for relief, considering that the Lord who is our master, and he whom we serve, he is a mighty God, and is able to deliver us from all our enemies. And we may learn to do this by that whilk we see every day in our own houses, or in the houses of others; that even as servants of both sexes looks to the hand of their masters and their mistresses for help, when anything ails them, or they are wronged by any, especially having the conscience in themselves of dutifulness and loyalty to them; even so may we, having the conscience of dutifulness and of obedience to God, look for help from him. And upon this confidence and persuasion, then propone our petitions to God; and let us even double our petitions at the throne of his grace; so that still the more we be opposed by the enemies, and the more obloquies they raise against us, we may be the more earnest in our supplications to God, and bring them before him, as Rabshakel's libels, and spread all out before him, whatever we have to say; and then we may assure ourselves that we sall not go away comfortless, but the Lord sall answer our petitions to us.
There be two parts to be considered in the psalm:--- 1. The proposition or profession that the kirk makes. . The petition that the kirk presents to God. _
In the kirk's proposition there is---1. The profession of her confidence: " Unto thee lift I up mine eyes." 2. In whom her confidence is, or the reason of it: ¢« O thou that dwelleth in the heavens." Tt is placed on the transcendent providence and power of God, who sits in the heaven above, and rules the earth beneath, at his pleasure. 3. The greatness, or (if so I may say) the vehemency and earnestness of this confidence of the kirk, expressed by a comparison tane from servants of both sexes. ¢ As the eyes of servants wait upon the hand of their masters, and as the eye of maids looketh unto the hand of their mistress, so our eyes wait upon the Lord our God." 4. There is the continuance of this onwaiting of the kirk: * Until that he have mercy upon us." That is, we will still wait till the blessed time come,
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326 SERMON.,
that he shew himself to be gracious to us, and so work our deliverance. ]
First. "Unto thee lift I up mine eyes." The eyes, ye know, are a principal member of the body; and there are many members joined in the face, wherein, (as one has marked well), the soul is said to have a kind of commerce or representation; and principally the eyes appear there, and the eyes are said to be the mirrors of the mind. And except that it be done in hypocrisy, to feign our looks,---I say, where hypocrisy is not, where the eyes are bended, there the mind is bended also, the inward and the outward sight still going together. Now, ye will {ind sometimes that the children of God will have their eyes cast down, so that for shame they cannot look up to heaven, nor to God who 1s in the heavens: as the publican, Luke xviii.,* he stood afar off, and could not so much as lift up his eyes to heaven, but smote upon his breast, and cried, ¢ Lord, be merciful to me a sinner." This was because he was pressed with the burden of his sins. And Matt. xxvi.,+ our Lord, he cast himself down upon the ground, and hid his face, as not daring to lift up his eyes to heaven. This was not because he was pressed with the burden of his awin sins, as the publican was, for he had no sin at all; but the cause why he looked down was, because he was pressed with the burden of our sins, whilk he was now bearing upon his back, and that he might satisfy the justice of God for them. And he also, John xi., ] lifted up his eyes to heaven, when he was raising a dead man there; and being confident that he should do it, therefore he lifts up his eyes to God, and to heaven. And many times says this prophet David in the psalms, ‘"Unto the Lord do I lift up mine eyes." ¢TI lift up my eyes to the mountains, from whence my help comes," etc. This is the refuge of the children of God in their greatest straits. Now for the wicked and worldly man, again, in the time of his adversity, because he has not had the right sense of sin, nor had the right challenge for it, nor true humiliation, he looks not down as the publican did in
* Ver g2, $:Vervia: ¢ Ver. 41,
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PSALM CXXIIL I, 2. 327
the sense of his sin; but he looks up, he is effronted, supercilious; he has that haughty eye spoken of in the Proverbs, and therefore he cannot lift up his eyes to God. He may well be haughty in himself, and think himself great beside others, as a man who is standing upon a high place, he will think all these who are beneath him to be but little beside him; but he cannot lift up his eyes in confidence to God. So this is the difference between the spiritual and the natural, the renewed and the unrenewed man. The spiritual and renewed man, in his greatest troubles, when he is molested and . troubled on all sides---there are troubles at his right hand and at his left, behind him and before him, and he can win no way out of trouble---then he directs his eyes upward; he knows that port is not closed; and says to God, ¢ Unto thee lift [ up mine eyes." And when the child of God directs his eyes towards men, and seeks help and relief from them, and all of them refuse him, and will not hear his complaints, yet this he knows, and he is sure of it, The living God, he is aye to the fore, and his ears are evermore open to hear the complaints of his awin, when they come to him: and upon that they are bold to lift up their eyes to him. This indeed is the great difference between the wicked and the godly; for when the worldly and wicked men are in great distress, except they see some means how they think they may be delivered, they give over all hope of deliverance. And surely, albeit when we have peace, health, strength, etc., we think not mickle of this, and it cannot be distinguished, yet in time of affliction and persecution this will be seen: as when there is sickness on our bodies, or anything of that kind upon ourselves, or when there is a common calamity upon the kirk or land where we live, or when death calls upon us out of this life, or when we are called by our Lord to judgment, then it is comfortable to us, that we dare lift up our eyes in confidence to God. And there is no way for us to lift up our eyes thus to God, but to cast down our eyes first in the distrust of ourselves, and to humble ourselves: I mean not of the bowing of the head, or casting ourselves down upon the ground, but to cast down ourselves before God, in true humiliation, in repentance, and sorrow for sin. If thou do this, then indeed it is a fore
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328 SERMON.
runner to thee, that thou sall be exalted; and if thou be thus humbled before Ged for sin, then thou may be bold to lift up thy eyes to God for help in thy greatest trouble.
Mark here secondly, The kirk makes profession of her confidence in God in the time of her greatest trouble, and complains to God of the enemies who trouble her. Then, in time of trouble, confidence in God is a very necessar thing, either for a Christian soul, or for the kirk of God; and there is not any one thing by (besides) faith, that is more spoken of in Scripture than this same confidence in God in time of trouble. Men may, indeed, when they speak mickle of a purpose, speak it idly, but when the Lord speaks mickle of a purpose, and insists upon it, he does it not idly; but where he speaks mickle of a thing, we are evermore inclined to the contrair, and it is sure, if we get not that, then we will perish.
Now, wherefore is it that the Lord speaks so mickle of this? for that is sure, he has aye some special reasons for it, when he does it. First, to let us know that these who will be presumptuous, and seem to be confident in God in time of prosperity, yet they will be distrustful of him in time of adversity. Secondly, he speaks this so often, to let us know, that it is necessar for us to have confidence in God in trouble: for except we have confidence in God in trouble, then we will have no courage against it, nor patience under it, nor spiritual security not to be overcome by it, nor will we have any constancy always to depend upon God. Anes take away confidence, and take them all away; but have this, and then join them all: but specially to take away our confidence, whilk is the daughter of faith, and is the mother of all the rest,---if the soul be spoiled of this main one of confidence in God, then farewell to all the rest. Thirdly, It is necessar for us to have confidence in God, because of our condition and state of life heree. 'What are we in our life here? We are nothing else but strangers; and all will acknowledge that they are nothing else but strangers and in a pilgrimage here: and while thou art in this pilgrimage, this is the only staff that must uphold thee. Ay, our life here, it is a warfare; and sall a man go to war, and not have
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PSALM CXXIIL I, 2. 329
confidence to be victorious? If we have this confidence in God, though all the world were agaist us, we may well be slain, but we sall not be overcome. He that keeps his confidence fast in God, and his courage in him, the devil and the world and all cannot be able to overcome him. But upon the contrair, if we want this confidence in God, albeit we had never so mickle wit upon our side, albeit we had multitudes from Dan to Beersheba---from the one border of the land to the other, and had also men of great natural courage and strength of body, great rents, mickle money, strong houses, etc., yet he can strike us with such terrours and fears, as we sall be quite overcome. If once we begin to doubt of God, and put not our confidence in him, then we need not to look for any good. Desperation thinks that there is not a way of escaping, and presumption imagines that there is a way where there is not a way. A man who is shipbroken (shipwrecked), if he have any confidence to be safe, presently he makes to (sets to work), and works with feet and hands als fast as he can; but he who has no confidence lies still, and so sinks to the ground. And what else has it been but this confidence in God that has made so many confessors of the truth, and so many martyrs for it? And, therefore, since the servant of God, David, has made this profession of confidence in the Lord, in the name of the kirk, let us make this confession also. Since we have of late made a confession of our faith, let us make a confession of our confidence in God.: And there be two ills, whilk this confidence in God will militate against. First, It will militate against difficulties, whilk we may meet with into the way. When we would do our duty to God, and would do no more but our duty, and yet, for all that, we find oppositions against us, even m doing of our duty, then let us have courage and confidence in God. Sall we leave our duty undone because we think it a hard matter to be done? Yea, sall we leave it because it is impossible, as we think 7---to say, There is a lion in the way; it will slay me if I go there, (whilk is the sluggard's pretext) No; but let us go forward, and fear them nothing, when our confidence is in God. Ye see what the Lord says to
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330 SERMON.
Jermie, Jer. i.,* ¢"I have made thee a defenced city, and ane iron pillar, and a brazen wall against the king of Judah and the whole princes (all the princes) thereof, against the priests and the whole people in the land. They sall fight against thee, but they sall not prevail; for I am with thee, to deliver thee. And therefore gird up thy loins and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee; be not dismayed of their faces." And this same is the word that is used of the apostles, (and indeed it was very rightly applied to them), ‘"" That they spake with boldness all that the Lord had delivered to them." They might say, O! if 1 say this, then men will oppose themselves against me, and 1 will offend these who are in authority; and yet, nevertheless, they went on, and says all that the Lord had commanded them to say. And this same is ascribed by the apostle Paul to himself, 1 Cor. xvi.,,+ "For a great door and effectual is opened to me, for there are many adversars." As if he said, 1 see many adversars to oppose the truth, and therefore it 1s that I resolve to be the more bold, and to go on against all their oppositions.} For, for us to yield, or to fall back from the truth, because there are many adversars into the way, that were to make truth to yield to errour, to make God subject to man, and to give the ordinance of man above the ordinance of God. Secondly, This confidence in God, it militates against uncertainty of success. Some will say, When I have spent my health, strength, estate in the world, what certainty have I that I sall have success? Ans. A particular certainty thou has not indeed, because that is not revealed; but resolve thou to do thy duty, and thou sall find the success to be good and comfortable. Even as Esther, she said, "I will go in to the king; and if T perish, I perish." Mordecai had told her that the people of God should be delivered, (forhe in that, ina manner, wasa prophet), and shebelieved that
* Verse 17-19. t Verse g.
1 The maxim of Henderson throughout this great contest seems to have been, contra audentior ito. Opposition and resistance, so far from shaking his confidence and resolution, only led him to assume higher ground; and "his clear strong head and earnest heart" was the guiding star of the nation.
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PSATLMUC RS TS S2rae 331
they should be delivered; but she kent (knew) not that that should be the time of their deliverance; yet she resolved that she will hazard fair, and so upon that she goes in and hazards all, come as it will come. And the three children also, Dan iii., they resolve upon the like. They see the hot fire burning before them, and they were to be casten into it; and they think with themselves, we know not whether we will be safe or not at this time, that we sall not be brunt; but this we know, that our God is able to save us, and therefore we will not bow to the image, whether he keep us unbrunt now or not. And so it is evermore the best for us to do that whilk God commands us to do, whatever appearance of success we see into it. And for jthe cause that we have in hand, let us still go on in doing our duty, remembering always that the duty of anything belongs to us, but the success of it belongs to God.
"Who sits, or dwells, in the heavens, to thee lift I up mine eyes." Then this is the nature of true confidence, not to trust in ourselves, not to trust in the arm of flesh, but to deny ourselves and all others, and to put our confidence in God. Even when thou art perplexed on all hands, and wats (wots) not what to do, then direct thine eyes to God: acknowledge this with Jeremie,* ¢ Cursed be ‘the man that puts his trust in the arm of flesh." Turn thy eyes from thyself, and turn them towards God, as Solomon, Prov.,+ he counsels men not to trust in their own wisdom, but to trust in the wisdom of God. And why does he this? Because he himself had mickle wisdom, and yet he saw that it was not to be lippened (trusted) to; and therefore he counsels others not to lippen to their wisdom.
Secondly. There is the ground of the kirk's confidence. "O thou that dwelleth in the heavens." Ye know the heavens, ‘and the heaven of heavens, are not able to contain the Lord, as a house does a man and his family, or as this kirk does us, and yet he is said to sit or to dwell in heaven, because there the fairest glory of God is seen. There is - mickle of his glory, and more than we can consider of, seen
* xvil, . t xxviil. 25, 26.
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332 SERMON.
in the earth; and aye the higher that we ascend, the more glory; as in the firmament there is the sun, the moon, the stars; and there is more of his glory to be seen in the heaven of heavens, and mickle more in any of them, than in the earth. And what were all this glory that is in the earth, all these precious and divers colours in it, if so be we had not light from heaven? then all things in the earth would be alike to us. And so there is great glory of God in the heavens, and aye the farder up that we ascend, there is the greater glory; and when we ascend to that place, where his angels and saincts glorified are, there there is great glory, and from thence is it that his glory does appear to the children of men. And therefore it is said, Ps. cxv.,* "The Lord is in the heavens, and does whatsoever he pleases;" and Deut. xxxii.,t *The Lord rideth in the heaven for thy help, and for his excellency in the sky." And this is it which is set down in the beginning of the Lord's prayer to that same effect, ¢ Our Father which art in heaven." Wherefore call we him, Our Father, but because he is in heaven, and does what he will? He is Deus optimus et maximus; he is the best Lord that is, and he is the greatest Lord: he is our Father, and therefore he is a God of great kindness to us. And then he is exceeding great, and so he is both willing, and he is able, to bestow all things needful upon us. He being our Father, how can he be but willing? and his power is great, because he can rent the heavens in sunder, as he did for his people Israel, and so deliver his people.
The lesson that we have to learn of this is, that the ground of all our confidence and joy is because of the power of God and of his providence. Anes learn to call him God and Father, and then we may conclude also that he is mighty, and sits and rules in heaven, and does among the children of men whatsoever he will. And therefore I would have you to be acquaint with the power and providence of God, that as ye profess he is mighty, so ye would also believe it. Consider, therefore, that the power of God is difterent from the power of man, as indeed it is. 1. God is able to do
%W erse 3 + Verse 26.
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what he will; but for any man, he is not able to do what he will, and so there is a very wide difference there. The greatest man in the world is not able to do whatsoever he will. One man, I grant, is able to do more than another; a king is able to do more than any of his subjects, but he cannot do what he will. The Lord, indeed, can put bounds upon their will; but when he has given them liberty to will such a thing, then he can restrain their power;---albeit they should rage as the sea, yet it can go no further than the own bounds. But whatsoever God wills, that he is able to do; his will and his power are of equal bounds; the one of them surpasses not the other. One thing and another are alike in him; what he wills to be done---what his wisdom devises, and his goodness thinks meet---he has power to do it; but it is not so with men. 2. Whatsoever is possible and may be done, that God is able to do; but there are many things possible, and may be done, whilk men are not able to do. It is possible of stones to raise up children to Abraham, yet man cannot do this; but whatsoever is possible, and may be done, that God can do. Then, if whatsoever is possible, and may be done, God can do it, what needs us to run to another to get it done? If it be a thing we think impossible, why run we to a indirect mean, who cannot do all things possible? and if it be a thing that is possible, why go we not to God with it, who is able to do all? He that sits and rules in heaven, he has fulness of power in him---he can do all things. One creature can do one thing, and another another; one man can advise a thing, and another give counsel how to bring it to pass; a third will give money for it, another will undertake to do the turn, etc.; yet one cannot do all. And when all the creatures are gathered together, there is no fulness in them, there is evermore emptiness to be seen in them and vanity; and especially there is not fulness of power in them all, but only in God. Gather all the creatures together, God can do that whilk they can do all; ay, he can do more than they can do all. Yea, moreover, is there any power in the creature, but that whilk he givesto it? None; for it is in him that all things live, move, and have their being. That
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334 SERMON.
is true in all, whilk our Lord said to Pilate. "When Pilate says to him, ¢ Knowest thou not that I' have power to crucify thee, and I have power to release thee?" Jesus answers him, ¢ Thou couldst have no power at all, except it were given thee from above." So there is no man, who has any power at all to do anything, either for thee or against thee, but as he has power from above. If ye were acquainted with the power of God, [O] but ye would think it to be wonderful ! Ques. What needs you to insist thus upon the power of God, and to tell that his power is in heaven? who is there who doubts of that? Ans. It's true all will profess he is in heaven, and all will profess he has power enough in time of prosperity; but when there comes any distress upon yourselves, or any who belongs to you, or any judgment upon the land, then your faith proves to be exceeding weak in apprehending the power of God. And then it is that our confidence in the power of God should kyth;* for when man cannot help us, then have we the benefit of our confidence in God. Believe this, therefore, that God is in the heavens, and that we have to do with one who is both a gracious and a mighty God; believe it, and make the right use of it. Remember that he who made all things, and upholds them all, he can do this for me also. If it be any comfort for thy soul, or any lust that thou would have overcome, or if it be a deliverance to the kirk, God can do that: he who has now changed the face of the earth, and made it green where it was withered,+ he can change the face of the kirk, and of thy soul also, when he thinks time. And if authority be against the changing of the face of the kirk, in making it to be green again,} he who is in
* Kyth. Appear in action,
Tt was now the month of May.
1 Allthe efforts of the king, at this time, were directed against the work of reformation. In the instructions to the Commissioner, whose appointment was notified to the Privy Council on the 1oth of May, the king, whilst, from politic motives, making some relaxations in favour of the covenanters, instructs the Commissioner to *" admit of no petition against the five articles of Perth," and insists on the town of Edinburgh departing from the covenant as a condition of the restoration to it of the council and session, that had been removed from it; and so on. At the same time, Hamilton
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PSALM. CXXHL I, 2. 335
heaven can help that. Remember that London is als near to him who is in heaven as Scotland is, and so God can fall in upon the heart of the king, and of these who are about him, and let him and them see the right way. And be comforted in this, because the Lord has given evidences of his power already, and has done mickle for his awin glory already: and he who can do that, why can he not do the rest also? If so be that we by our sins hinder him not to work, he will bring it to a consummation and perfection at last. Thirdly. * As the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their master, and as the eyes of a maid looketh unto the hand of her mistress, so our eyes wait upon the Lord our God." This is to express the manner of confidence that a Christian soul or a kirk has in the power of God: even as servants look to the helping hand of their masters, so do they to God. ~Servants, 1 grant, they are always miserable; but they were in another manner of misery then nor they be now, for then they were readily exposed to mickle contempt and to many injuries. Servants then had no power to wear any weapon; but indeed they were used almost as beasts in thraldom everyway; and when they were injured, they might not mint (attempt) to help themselves, but behoved to look only to their masters for help, and complain to them: and so behoved a handmaid to do to her mistress also. 1. Consider that there be two sorts of servants set down here, man-servants and maid-servants; and this is to let us know that both sexes may be confident in God. Not only may men be confident in the power of God, but even women also, who are more frail and feeble. Not only may women mourn to God for wrongs done to them, and have repentance for sin, but they may be confident in God also. And therefore see, in that rehearsal of believers and cloud of witnesses, not only is the faith of men noted and commended by the Spirit of God, but also the faith of women: and
-was instructed to ¢ declare, that, if there be not sufficient strength within the kingdom to force the refractory to obedience, power shall come from England, and that myself will come in person with them, being resolved to hazard my life rather than suffer authority to be contemned." Burn:t's Memoirs of the House of Hamilton.
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336 SERMON.
among the judges, Deborah, Jael, etc., are commended as worthies, and courageous in God. And the women also in the new Testament are noted for their following of Christ; when Judas had sold him, Peter forsworn him, and when Pilate and the priests had condemned him to the shameful death of the cross,---even when all fled from him, then they followed him. And therefore we must not judge of grace as we do of nature; for there may be Christian courage in women as well as in men, albeit courage be not so natural to them: and they may adhere to Christ even when men forsake him.
2. Ye may perceive here, that by the relation that is between masters and servants ye may know the relation between God and his people. A master by the disposition that he has to his servant may know in some measure what is God's disposition towards him. A kind master will be loath to see his servant wronged, and he will count that whilk is done to his servant to be done to himself; so the Lord, be will not suffer his children to be wronged by the world; he says to Saul, ¢ Saul, why persecutest thou me?" And the servant also may be confident by that whilk his master does to him. If he be a dutiful servant and faithful, then he will look for his fee and his reward from his master; but if any serve not their master, they can look for no good thing from them. So if we serve God faithfully, he sall bless us with all good things; and we sall be saved by him, and protected from all ills.
3. But the special thing that we have to learn from this [is],---If we would have confidence in the power and providence of God in the time of our trouble, we must be dutiful servants to God. He who is not a dutiful and ane honest servant to his master dare neither look for his hand to help him in his distress, nor yet to reward him; nor yet a maid who has not done her duty to her mistress. But if so be that they have been faithful and honest servants, and has done their duty, and has to do with good masters also, then they fear not but to be defended and rewarded. And therefore, as ye would wish the Lord's hand to help you any way,
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PSALM CXXIIIL I, 2. 337
strive to serve him faithfully; and if we will do that, then we may look confidently for help from him.
There is a twofold looking to our master. First, there is a looking to his eye; secondly, there is a looking to his hand. ~We must look to his hand indeed, to help and to reward us, but we must also look to his eye, to get direction from it. "When thou looks to God's eye, and by his eye knows what his mind is, and runs to the obeying of that, then thou may also look to his hand, that he will help thee, and reward thee, as he sees meet. There be many servants who look to the hand of their master, to reward and to help them, who look not to their eye also to direct them, and so do we to God also; but we should look to both. And therefore, if we would have help from God in trouble, or if we would have any good thing from him, let us be dutiful servants to him. And to the end that we may be dutiful servants to God, there are three things required of us. 1. Continual attendance upon God. We should still wait as in the presence of the Lord, set ourselves continually as in his sight; but especially we should be present at his courtdays upon his Sabbaths. Say this, Sall I profess to be one of his vassals, and he has ordained them to convene to his court-day, and when he calls upon his vassals, sall he miss me? Men who has many vassals, albeit some of them be away, they will not be missed, but it is not so with God; he will miss the meanest of his vassals: and therefore resolve, I will keep his court-days, and I will always attend, as in his presence. 2. If we will be dutiful servants to God, obedience is required of us, and that great obedience. Disobedience is a thing that becomes not a servant; for let us wait upon God as we will, if we do not the thing that he bids us do, it is all for nought. We must do the will of God, but not our awin: so we must be obedient servants, not looking to our own will, but to our master's will only. This is a question disputed by Aulus Gellius and some others, If a servant be employed about a matter, and he has gotten direction from his master to do it after such a manner, and after he has gotten direction the servant sees another way to do it, how it may be greater credit and honour
3
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3 38 SERMON.
to his master, and greater gain also, the question is,--- Whether of the two ways he ought to follow: whether that whilk his master directed him, or that whilk he has seen to be best for his master's honour, and for his profit also? But there needs not such as this here; for it is sure that it is evermore greatest honour for God, and will be greatest contentment to thy own soul, to do that whilk God has commanded: and there is no obedience but that. 3. Faithfulness is required also. And ye sall take up this faithfulness in two parts. First, in uprightness. That is, when thy mind bears thee witness that, in that whilk thou does, thou art seeking thy master's honour only; albeit, indeed, thou may have other by-thoughts in anything thou does, yet thou censures these, and goes on in doing that, and cares not albeit thou should be disgraced in the doing of it, if so be that God be honoured. We would think, when we are suffering anything for a kind friend, O if he knew of this, he would not let it be unrewarded: but God knows what we do for him, and so will reward it. And if we be the servants of God, we must make a count of everything that we do; and therefore we must be upright, and do that whilk God bids us do, albeit all should be displeased with us for the doing of it, yea, albeit that thou thyself should be displeased. And remember that when we are doing that whilk God commands us, none will be displeased with us but these who are the enemies of God: and why may not we, (ay, we must), displease God's enemies? And remember that these who oppose against thee in doing the commandment of God, they must stand before him to be judged. The second thing required in faithfulness is diligence. For what, albeit ane were never so upright, and wronged not their master, and yet be not diligent in doing that whilk they should do, they cannot be called faithful. And albeit a servant were never so diligent, if his diligence be only for himself, then he is not faithful. Whatever task the Lord has given you, do it uprightly, and whatever talent the Lord has bestowed upon you, use it diligently for your master's honour.
If we would wait upon God at all times and in all places, and be obedient to his will and commandments, and be up
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PSALM CXXIIL I, 2. 239
right and diligent and so faithful servants to him, and thus look to the eye of God to direct us, we might then confidently look to his hand also: and indeed he has a large hand, both to reward us, and also to save us.
There be two things we must look to here, and also beware of. 1. Slaves, they serve their masters more for fear nor for love, and for reward more nor the master's honour. We cannot indeed get fear altogether put away, but see that we have love also to stir us up to serve God. And we may also serve for a reward, and have our eye to it, but we must not think that that reward is due to us for our service, but that it is freely conferred to us of the free grace of God: and see that thou look more to the honour of God in that whilk thou does than to the reward. 2. Eye-service is also censured in servants; that is, they will be busy when their master or mistress are looking to them, but when their back is turned, then they slack of that. They would work a sore work, if they would aye work as they do at that time when their master is beholding them. I would have you to be - eye-servants in that respect, and to be aye busy, because your master's eye is aye looking upon you; but as he looks aye to you, so I would have you to have your eye continually upon him. If we consider this, that God is evermore looking upon us, to see what we are doing, it would be good for us: it would teach us to be upright and diligent, and so to be faithful to him.
Fourthly, There is the continuance of the kirk's confidence. ¢ Until that he have mercy upon us." That is, I will evermore trust in God, I will still pray to him, and continue in prayer, till he open his plentiful hand, and give me that whilk I seek. Whatever thou be seeking of God, either for the kirk of God or for thy awin soul, wait on whill (till) thou get all that thou would have. As a dog when he has got one morsel of meat, he looks aye up to get more till he be full, so hold thou thy eye still upon God till thou be fully satisfied. Beloved, there is a time when the Lord uses to exercise his kirk and children with afflictions, and a time when he uses to shew mercy to his people, and to deliver them from these afflictions. Before the time that the
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340 SERMON.
Lord has appointed, he will not shew them the favour of deliverance, but when the time of deliverance is once come, then there is no more delay of it: and all that time that he afflicts us we should have our eyes upon him for deliverance. There was a time when the posterity of Abraham was afflicted in Egypt, and it continued whill the set time; and when the time was come, there was no more delay, but that same night they were delivered. And there was a time als appointed for them to be in Babel, and when that time was expired, presently they were set free. Sometimes the Lord tells beforehand how long the captivity of his people sall remain, to let us know that he could tell it always; but most ordinarily he reveals it to none, but keeps it secret to himself. And therefore all the matter for us is, that all the time, till the Lord crown the work of our deliverance, we should have our eyes upon him, and wait upon him till he have mercy upon us: and it was for this end that I did choise (choose) this text at this time.
The Lord has begun to be merciful to us, and to bring back our captivity in some degree; and therefore let us still have our eye upon him for help, till he perfyte the work that he has begun. Remember of that whilk is written Isaiah Ixii.,® ¢ Ye that make mention of the Lord, keep no silence, nor give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise of the earth." What is the grace or mercy that ye look for, and are seeking from the Lord? Is it not that God would establish Jerusalem, and make it the beauty of the land? Now has Jerusalem been the beauty of the land thir years by-gane? The Lord, indeed, has now begun to draw some draughts of it; but thir years past it has been the deformity, the blot, and the division that was in the land. The kirk of Scotland thir years bygane has been the shame of Scotland; and all the talking that has been has been of ministers. Now this should be our desire, that the kirk may be the beauty of the land again. The Lord, he has begun to draw some draughts of the kirk's beauty again; but if we insist not in our prayers,
* Verses 6, 7.
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PSALM CXXIIIL I, 2. 341
the Lord will stand still, or make it als ill, or worse than it was again. Now all of us should be of these who make mention of the Lord; and therefore let us still cry to the Lord, and give him no rest, no Sabbath nor no day, but let ilk day be a Sabbath for that, till the Lord make the kirk of Scotland to be the beauty of Scotland. The kingdom of itself, indeed, is not very glorious, but he may make his kirk to be glorious in it, and make his kirk here to be the praise of the earth again; and he can also make the kingdom glorious because of the glory of the kirk. And ye who are women, be like to that woman of Canaan, go often to your knees, and pray to God, and take not ane answer; although the Lord seem to refuse you at the first, yet insist still, and ye sall get such ane answer and a commendation as she gat.
Will not God avenge himself when the ambition, pride, insolency of the enemies is come to a height? Then it is a fit time for the Lord to work; as it is Ps. xii.,* when the enemies are begun to speak proudly, then it is time for him to arise and lend his foes a rap. No, we needed not to doubt, but if we were als far humbled before God as the enemies has exalted themselves, but the Lord should shew mercy to us. But if so be that we turn back again to our sins, or turn away from prayer, this is the very way to make the Lord to turn away from us; but forsake sin, and insist in prayer to God, and he sall come. And marvel not albeit he come not at the first cry to us, for many a time has he cried upon us and we have not heard him. But let us endure in prayer, and be fervent both in private and public, and then there is no question but the Lord sall hear us, and sall stretch out his hand to help us, for our comfort, and for the good and comfort of the generations that sall follow after us. Whilk the Lord grant may be done, for Jesus Christ's sake, To whom, etc.
* Ver: 3-5.
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[MAY 20, 1638.] [AFTERNOON.] PREFACE.
The readiest way for keeping religion in the land, and for continuing with us the pure service and worship of God, wherein the Lord only delights, were for us to delight ourselves in the exercises of religion and of the service and worship of God. If so be that we delight in them with a spiritual delight, and testify it in ane outward observation of the times and means of his service and worship, then this is a token that God will continue them with us; for God never took away religion and the means of his service and worship by no violence yet, when this was done. But on the other part again, let the greatest in the land join their power for continuing of religion, and the wisest in the land their wisdom, and all that they can, if so be in the meantime that people have no delight in religion, nor keep not the exercises of God's public worship, religion sall be tane away in despite of them all. Ps. cii.,,* It is shewn as a reason there why the Lord will arise and have mercy upon Sion, ‘"" Because," says he, "thy servants take pleasuré in the stones, and favour the dust thereof." That is, they love Sion, and the service and worship of God, whilk is there. ‘When they came to a height of delighting in Sion, then it was time for the Lord to deliver them, and to restore Sion to her former beauty. As men who has any whom they love well, they delight to be where they are, so when the servants of God delight to be where he is, then it is a token
¥ Ver. 1314
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PREFACE. 343
that they love him, and he them, and that he will bide with them. I speak this the rather because I can see but little appearance that God sall bide with you, or that his worship sall remain here. Ye have gone als far on as ye can in a profession, and in confession of your faith, in making a covenant with God, and swearing and subscribing to it; and yet, for all that, the most part of you has no more delight in the means of the service and worship of God than ye had before. This has ever been your fault; and I have been striving with you for it these twenty years, since | came among you,* and yet the most part of you who are the commons never mends a whit in coming to the house of God on the Sabbath, and ye who are their masters have no care to bring them here. Ye seemed to frequent the kirk somewhat better two or three days, but now ye are fallen als slack as ever ye were. I say, for als great hope as ye have that the service and worship of God sall be continued with you, the Lord sall, for all that, take it from you if ye continue thus. I know, indeed, that God is merciful, and for the respect that he has to some few of his secret ones, he will spare very long, and will continue in the means of his worship; but when the means of his worship are thus despised, as they are by you, how can it be thought that he will continue them? The Lord, I will assure you, he will give you over to delusions except ye amend your lives, and make more of the means of God's worship nor ever ye have done, and especially learn to amend them in this point of sanctifying the whole Sabbat h. And therefore let us, etc.
*The author had been at this time fwenty-four years minister at Leuchars, as he told the Assembly of this year, when his translation t o Edinburgh was under discussion. How, then, are we to account for the discrepancy? Is it because he is here speaking in round numbers? or may it not be because the first years of his ministry, which are left out of accoun were years during which he was a stranger to divine grace, and took no interest in the spiritual welfare of his people? On this latter suppositi on, which appears not at all improbable, the date of his conversion by the prea ching of Bruce may at last be approximately ascertained.
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344 SERMON.
SERMON. Psarm'exxms. . '4.*
Ye heard the profession that is made, in the name of the kirk, of her confidence in God, ---that in heavy distress she lifts up her eyes to God. And the ground of her confidence is, because ‘ God is in the heavens,"---he is a majestic and a mighty God, and does whatsoever he will. Ye heard also of the manner of her confidence. Even as servants of all sexes looks to the hand of their masters and mistresses for help and relief, or for a reward, so the kirk looks also towards God's hand. And then there is the continuance of this her confidence,---she will never give it over. It is nothing to wait on, and to seek earnestly, for a while, but this is the praise of on-waiting and confidence, to wait on in earnestness and in constancy till the Lord be gracious; and to wait still upon him, and to cry aye to him, till he show that same particular mercy whilk the kirk or a Christian desires.
In this part of the psalm he propones his petition to God in name of the kirk. If so be that we put our confidence in God, and have our eyes bended upon him to receive directions from him, and wait upon him till his time, and in this time pray to the Lord that he would be gracious and show mercy, we may then be confident. And the reason he gives for putting up this petition is, because the kirk has readily (likely) ado with enemies who use to be at ease and in prosperity in the world; and when they are in such a case, then they labour by all means to breed trouble and adversity to the kirk of God. And this makes them to be proud and haughty; and they declare their pride by their contempt and mocking of the servants of God. And this their contempt and mocking, it comes to a very great
* « Have mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy upon us; for we are exceedingly filled with contempt. Our soul is exceedingly filled with the scorning of those that are at ease, and with the contempt of the proud."
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MAY 20, 1638. [ForENOON. ] PREFACE.
We have no comfort to look for but according to the promise of God, and God has promised no comfort to us except we depend upon him for it, and testify our dependence upon him by calling upon his name,--- except we be earnest in prayer, except we be fervent, and except we continue and endure in calling upon the name of God. Could we cry to the Lord, and cry constantly to him, either for deliverance from any ills, or for communication of any good, and that either temporal or spiritual, then the Lord, he would open the rich and plentiful treasures of his grace, and of his goodness, and give abundantly to us. Alas! in the day of our affliction we seem to do somewhat of this kind: but whenever we see any appearance of deliverance and outgate, then incontinent our mouths are closed up from crying, and our hands faint, and fall down from doing any more. Judges iii.,* as it is written there, the people of Israel were in thraldom to Eglon, King of Moab, eighteen years; but so soon as they cried unto, the Lord, the Lord raised up Ehud to be a judge and a deliverer to them: and so ye see, als soon as they cried to the Lord, the Lord put to his hand to help them. And there is no question but in the very beginning of the eighteen years, a people who formerly had the experience of liberty, in the sense of this their captivity, even then they behoved to make a moan to God, and groaned to him; but they cried not to him: and no but they spake to him (for it 1s not the extend * Versesi14, I5.
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PREFACE. 823
ing of the voice that 1 mean), but they cried not to him in the earnestness of their heart. And all the time before the eighteen years were expired, they have been wishing to be delivered; but their affliction has not been sensible enough to them. It is long before affliction become impungent to us, that we will cry earnestly to the Lord for relief of it: and it is only affliction that makes us to cry to God; and we never cry earnestly to the Lord in affliction whill (till) we see we can do no better. It is marked of the Athenians, that they never proponed conditions of peace to any people about them but in mourning apparel; that is, when they could do no better, then they procured (negotiated) for peace. Surely so it is with us: we never cry earnestly to God but while we are in affliction and in trouble. Our hearts are like green timber, that will not burn except it be aye blown at; and whenever it ceases to be blown at, then it dies out. Even so is it with us; except the Lord exercise us in afflictions, and continue in exercising us with them, then incontinent our hearts grows careless and coldrife in crying to God: and when the Lord takes aff his afflicting hand, then the little spunk of fervency that before we had in crying to God, it becomes to be scarce discernible. It is a strange thing, albeit the Lord has threatened us with judgments, and we have seen them approaching very near to have seized upon us, yet if we begin to see any little appearance of their removing, although we cannot certify ourselves of it, yet incontinent we fail in our crying to the Lord. And this, indeed, makes the Lord ofttimes to interrupt the work that he had begun, and to stand still there; or otherwise, to turn back again. When we cry to the Lord earnestly and constantly, then he goes on; but when we fail in our crying to him, then he stands still there, or turns his back on us, and lets us go where we were, and rather worse.
I say this for this end, that every one of us are bound to cry to God, not only for the comfort of our own soul, and for the pardon of our sins; but we are also bound to cry for the great work that is in hand in this land, in building the ruined house of God again. And when we began to cry for this, the Lord was coming towards us; he was
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324 SERMON.
renting his heavens, and stretching out his mighty hand for our help. Now if we sall faint in our prayers, and haunt not the exercises of his worship, (whilk may be seen among you this day,) then the Lord sall withdraw his helping hand from us, and sall leave us in a more duleful case than we were in at the first. And therefore let us now fall down before the Lord our God, and beseech him that he would pity us, and help us, and yet go on into the good work that he has begun amongst us, till it be perfected.
SERMON. Esi e XL i ool ®
Both the word of God, and everywhere almost the continual experience of God's providence and of his dealing towards his kirk and people, makes this to be manifest and clearly seen to be true, that the godly, while they are here, are subject to many distresses in the world,---to trouble, persecution, contempt, reproach, and scornings of the worldly and natural man, and of wicked men. And therefore, seeing it is so, we had need of strong consolation against so great and so grievous a tentation as this is, and to know how to be freed, and to be conquerors over all these. As, indeed, it has ever pleased the Lord yet to deal with his kirk, that for every horn that has exalted itself against her, the Lord has letten us see a hammer to beat it down.
We have here set down, in this Psalm, a general rule both for the kirk of God, and for every child of God, to be used by every one of them in their trouble, distress, grief, and vexation by the world. There is no remeid (help) for us: then, although indeed we may and ought daily to cast down our eyes for our sins, whilk we commit against God,
¥ « Unto thee lift T up mine eyes, O thou that dwellest in the heavens. Behold, as the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maiden unto the hand of her mistress; so our eyes wait upon the Lord our God, until that he have mercy upon us."
= Zik
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PSALM CXXIII. I, 2. 325
yet in respect of our troubles by the wicked in the world, let us lift up our eyes confidently to God for relief, considering that the Lord who is our master, and he whom we serve, he is a mighty God, and is able to deliver us from all our enemies. And we may learn to do this by that whilk we see every day in our own houses, or in the houses of others; that even as servants of both sexes looks to the hand of their masters and their mistresses for help, when anything ails them, or they are wronged by any, especially having the conscience in themselves of dutifulness and loyalty to them; even so may we, having the conscience of dutifulness and of obedience to God, look for help from him. And upon this confidence and persuasion, then propone our petitions to God; and let us even double our petitions at the throne of his grace; so that still the more we be opposed by the enemies, and the more obloquies they raise against us, we may be the more earnest in our supplications to God, and bring them before him, as Rabshakel's libels, and spread all out before him, whatever we have to say; and then we may assure ourselves that we sall not go away comfortless, but the Lord sall answer our petitions to us.
There be two parts to be considered in the psalm:--- 1. The proposition or profession that the kirk makes. . The petition that the kirk presents to God. _
In the kirk's proposition there is---1. The profession of her confidence: " Unto thee lift I up mine eyes." 2. In whom her confidence is, or the reason of it: ¢« O thou that dwelleth in the heavens." Tt is placed on the transcendent providence and power of God, who sits in the heaven above, and rules the earth beneath, at his pleasure. 3. The greatness, or (if so I may say) the vehemency and earnestness of this confidence of the kirk, expressed by a comparison tane from servants of both sexes. ¢ As the eyes of servants wait upon the hand of their masters, and as the eye of maids looketh unto the hand of their mistress, so our eyes wait upon the Lord our God." 4. There is the continuance of this onwaiting of the kirk: * Until that he have mercy upon us." That is, we will still wait till the blessed time come,
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326 SERMON.,
that he shew himself to be gracious to us, and so work our deliverance. ]
First. "Unto thee lift I up mine eyes." The eyes, ye know, are a principal member of the body; and there are many members joined in the face, wherein, (as one has marked well), the soul is said to have a kind of commerce or representation; and principally the eyes appear there, and the eyes are said to be the mirrors of the mind. And except that it be done in hypocrisy, to feign our looks,---I say, where hypocrisy is not, where the eyes are bended, there the mind is bended also, the inward and the outward sight still going together. Now, ye will {ind sometimes that the children of God will have their eyes cast down, so that for shame they cannot look up to heaven, nor to God who 1s in the heavens: as the publican, Luke xviii.,* he stood afar off, and could not so much as lift up his eyes to heaven, but smote upon his breast, and cried, ¢ Lord, be merciful to me a sinner." This was because he was pressed with the burden of his sins. And Matt. xxvi.,+ our Lord, he cast himself down upon the ground, and hid his face, as not daring to lift up his eyes to heaven. This was not because he was pressed with the burden of his awin sins, as the publican was, for he had no sin at all; but the cause why he looked down was, because he was pressed with the burden of our sins, whilk he was now bearing upon his back, and that he might satisfy the justice of God for them. And he also, John xi., ] lifted up his eyes to heaven, when he was raising a dead man there; and being confident that he should do it, therefore he lifts up his eyes to God, and to heaven. And many times says this prophet David in the psalms, ‘"Unto the Lord do I lift up mine eyes." ¢TI lift up my eyes to the mountains, from whence my help comes," etc. This is the refuge of the children of God in their greatest straits. Now for the wicked and worldly man, again, in the time of his adversity, because he has not had the right sense of sin, nor had the right challenge for it, nor true humiliation, he looks not down as the publican did in
* Ver g2, $:Vervia: ¢ Ver. 41,
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the sense of his sin; but he looks up, he is effronted, supercilious; he has that haughty eye spoken of in the Proverbs, and therefore he cannot lift up his eyes to God. He may well be haughty in himself, and think himself great beside others, as a man who is standing upon a high place, he will think all these who are beneath him to be but little beside him; but he cannot lift up his eyes in confidence to God. So this is the difference between the spiritual and the natural, the renewed and the unrenewed man. The spiritual and renewed man, in his greatest troubles, when he is molested and . troubled on all sides---there are troubles at his right hand and at his left, behind him and before him, and he can win no way out of trouble---then he directs his eyes upward; he knows that port is not closed; and says to God, ¢ Unto thee lift [ up mine eyes." And when the child of God directs his eyes towards men, and seeks help and relief from them, and all of them refuse him, and will not hear his complaints, yet this he knows, and he is sure of it, The living God, he is aye to the fore, and his ears are evermore open to hear the complaints of his awin, when they come to him: and upon that they are bold to lift up their eyes to him. This indeed is the great difference between the wicked and the godly; for when the worldly and wicked men are in great distress, except they see some means how they think they may be delivered, they give over all hope of deliverance. And surely, albeit when we have peace, health, strength, etc., we think not mickle of this, and it cannot be distinguished, yet in time of affliction and persecution this will be seen: as when there is sickness on our bodies, or anything of that kind upon ourselves, or when there is a common calamity upon the kirk or land where we live, or when death calls upon us out of this life, or when we are called by our Lord to judgment, then it is comfortable to us, that we dare lift up our eyes in confidence to God. And there is no way for us to lift up our eyes thus to God, but to cast down our eyes first in the distrust of ourselves, and to humble ourselves: I mean not of the bowing of the head, or casting ourselves down upon the ground, but to cast down ourselves before God, in true humiliation, in repentance, and sorrow for sin. If thou do this, then indeed it is a fore
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328 SERMON.
runner to thee, that thou sall be exalted; and if thou be thus humbled before Ged for sin, then thou may be bold to lift up thy eyes to God for help in thy greatest trouble.
Mark here secondly, The kirk makes profession of her confidence in God in the time of her greatest trouble, and complains to God of the enemies who trouble her. Then, in time of trouble, confidence in God is a very necessar thing, either for a Christian soul, or for the kirk of God; and there is not any one thing by (besides) faith, that is more spoken of in Scripture than this same confidence in God in time of trouble. Men may, indeed, when they speak mickle of a purpose, speak it idly, but when the Lord speaks mickle of a purpose, and insists upon it, he does it not idly; but where he speaks mickle of a thing, we are evermore inclined to the contrair, and it is sure, if we get not that, then we will perish.
Now, wherefore is it that the Lord speaks so mickle of this? for that is sure, he has aye some special reasons for it, when he does it. First, to let us know that these who will be presumptuous, and seem to be confident in God in time of prosperity, yet they will be distrustful of him in time of adversity. Secondly, he speaks this so often, to let us know, that it is necessar for us to have confidence in God in trouble: for except we have confidence in God in trouble, then we will have no courage against it, nor patience under it, nor spiritual security not to be overcome by it, nor will we have any constancy always to depend upon God. Anes take away confidence, and take them all away; but have this, and then join them all: but specially to take away our confidence, whilk is the daughter of faith, and is the mother of all the rest,---if the soul be spoiled of this main one of confidence in God, then farewell to all the rest. Thirdly, It is necessar for us to have confidence in God, because of our condition and state of life heree. 'What are we in our life here? We are nothing else but strangers; and all will acknowledge that they are nothing else but strangers and in a pilgrimage here: and while thou art in this pilgrimage, this is the only staff that must uphold thee. Ay, our life here, it is a warfare; and sall a man go to war, and not have
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confidence to be victorious? If we have this confidence in God, though all the world were agaist us, we may well be slain, but we sall not be overcome. He that keeps his confidence fast in God, and his courage in him, the devil and the world and all cannot be able to overcome him. But upon the contrair, if we want this confidence in God, albeit we had never so mickle wit upon our side, albeit we had multitudes from Dan to Beersheba---from the one border of the land to the other, and had also men of great natural courage and strength of body, great rents, mickle money, strong houses, etc., yet he can strike us with such terrours and fears, as we sall be quite overcome. If once we begin to doubt of God, and put not our confidence in him, then we need not to look for any good. Desperation thinks that there is not a way of escaping, and presumption imagines that there is a way where there is not a way. A man who is shipbroken (shipwrecked), if he have any confidence to be safe, presently he makes to (sets to work), and works with feet and hands als fast as he can; but he who has no confidence lies still, and so sinks to the ground. And what else has it been but this confidence in God that has made so many confessors of the truth, and so many martyrs for it? And, therefore, since the servant of God, David, has made this profession of confidence in the Lord, in the name of the kirk, let us make this confession also. Since we have of late made a confession of our faith, let us make a confession of our confidence in God.: And there be two ills, whilk this confidence in God will militate against. First, It will militate against difficulties, whilk we may meet with into the way. When we would do our duty to God, and would do no more but our duty, and yet, for all that, we find oppositions against us, even m doing of our duty, then let us have courage and confidence in God. Sall we leave our duty undone because we think it a hard matter to be done? Yea, sall we leave it because it is impossible, as we think 7---to say, There is a lion in the way; it will slay me if I go there, (whilk is the sluggard's pretext) No; but let us go forward, and fear them nothing, when our confidence is in God. Ye see what the Lord says to
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330 SERMON.
Jermie, Jer. i.,* ¢"I have made thee a defenced city, and ane iron pillar, and a brazen wall against the king of Judah and the whole princes (all the princes) thereof, against the priests and the whole people in the land. They sall fight against thee, but they sall not prevail; for I am with thee, to deliver thee. And therefore gird up thy loins and arise, and speak unto them all that I command thee; be not dismayed of their faces." And this same is the word that is used of the apostles, (and indeed it was very rightly applied to them), ‘"" That they spake with boldness all that the Lord had delivered to them." They might say, O! if 1 say this, then men will oppose themselves against me, and 1 will offend these who are in authority; and yet, nevertheless, they went on, and says all that the Lord had commanded them to say. And this same is ascribed by the apostle Paul to himself, 1 Cor. xvi.,,+ "For a great door and effectual is opened to me, for there are many adversars." As if he said, 1 see many adversars to oppose the truth, and therefore it 1s that I resolve to be the more bold, and to go on against all their oppositions.} For, for us to yield, or to fall back from the truth, because there are many adversars into the way, that were to make truth to yield to errour, to make God subject to man, and to give the ordinance of man above the ordinance of God. Secondly, This confidence in God, it militates against uncertainty of success. Some will say, When I have spent my health, strength, estate in the world, what certainty have I that I sall have success? Ans. A particular certainty thou has not indeed, because that is not revealed; but resolve thou to do thy duty, and thou sall find the success to be good and comfortable. Even as Esther, she said, "I will go in to the king; and if T perish, I perish." Mordecai had told her that the people of God should be delivered, (forhe in that, ina manner, wasa prophet), and shebelieved that
* Verse 17-19. t Verse g.
1 The maxim of Henderson throughout this great contest seems to have been, contra audentior ito. Opposition and resistance, so far from shaking his confidence and resolution, only led him to assume higher ground; and "his clear strong head and earnest heart" was the guiding star of the nation.
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PSATLMUC RS TS S2rae 331
they should be delivered; but she kent (knew) not that that should be the time of their deliverance; yet she resolved that she will hazard fair, and so upon that she goes in and hazards all, come as it will come. And the three children also, Dan iii., they resolve upon the like. They see the hot fire burning before them, and they were to be casten into it; and they think with themselves, we know not whether we will be safe or not at this time, that we sall not be brunt; but this we know, that our God is able to save us, and therefore we will not bow to the image, whether he keep us unbrunt now or not. And so it is evermore the best for us to do that whilk God commands us to do, whatever appearance of success we see into it. And for jthe cause that we have in hand, let us still go on in doing our duty, remembering always that the duty of anything belongs to us, but the success of it belongs to God.
"Who sits, or dwells, in the heavens, to thee lift I up mine eyes." Then this is the nature of true confidence, not to trust in ourselves, not to trust in the arm of flesh, but to deny ourselves and all others, and to put our confidence in God. Even when thou art perplexed on all hands, and wats (wots) not what to do, then direct thine eyes to God: acknowledge this with Jeremie,* ¢ Cursed be ‘the man that puts his trust in the arm of flesh." Turn thy eyes from thyself, and turn them towards God, as Solomon, Prov.,+ he counsels men not to trust in their own wisdom, but to trust in the wisdom of God. And why does he this? Because he himself had mickle wisdom, and yet he saw that it was not to be lippened (trusted) to; and therefore he counsels others not to lippen to their wisdom.
Secondly. There is the ground of the kirk's confidence. "O thou that dwelleth in the heavens." Ye know the heavens, ‘and the heaven of heavens, are not able to contain the Lord, as a house does a man and his family, or as this kirk does us, and yet he is said to sit or to dwell in heaven, because there the fairest glory of God is seen. There is - mickle of his glory, and more than we can consider of, seen
* xvil, . t xxviil. 25, 26.
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332 SERMON.
in the earth; and aye the higher that we ascend, the more glory; as in the firmament there is the sun, the moon, the stars; and there is more of his glory to be seen in the heaven of heavens, and mickle more in any of them, than in the earth. And what were all this glory that is in the earth, all these precious and divers colours in it, if so be we had not light from heaven? then all things in the earth would be alike to us. And so there is great glory of God in the heavens, and aye the farder up that we ascend, there is the greater glory; and when we ascend to that place, where his angels and saincts glorified are, there there is great glory, and from thence is it that his glory does appear to the children of men. And therefore it is said, Ps. cxv.,* "The Lord is in the heavens, and does whatsoever he pleases;" and Deut. xxxii.,t *The Lord rideth in the heaven for thy help, and for his excellency in the sky." And this is it which is set down in the beginning of the Lord's prayer to that same effect, ¢ Our Father which art in heaven." Wherefore call we him, Our Father, but because he is in heaven, and does what he will? He is Deus optimus et maximus; he is the best Lord that is, and he is the greatest Lord: he is our Father, and therefore he is a God of great kindness to us. And then he is exceeding great, and so he is both willing, and he is able, to bestow all things needful upon us. He being our Father, how can he be but willing? and his power is great, because he can rent the heavens in sunder, as he did for his people Israel, and so deliver his people.
The lesson that we have to learn of this is, that the ground of all our confidence and joy is because of the power of God and of his providence. Anes learn to call him God and Father, and then we may conclude also that he is mighty, and sits and rules in heaven, and does among the children of men whatsoever he will. And therefore I would have you to be acquaint with the power and providence of God, that as ye profess he is mighty, so ye would also believe it. Consider, therefore, that the power of God is difterent from the power of man, as indeed it is. 1. God is able to do
%W erse 3 + Verse 26.
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PSALMICXXHI. T, 2, 333
what he will; but for any man, he is not able to do what he will, and so there is a very wide difference there. The greatest man in the world is not able to do whatsoever he will. One man, I grant, is able to do more than another; a king is able to do more than any of his subjects, but he cannot do what he will. The Lord, indeed, can put bounds upon their will; but when he has given them liberty to will such a thing, then he can restrain their power;---albeit they should rage as the sea, yet it can go no further than the own bounds. But whatsoever God wills, that he is able to do; his will and his power are of equal bounds; the one of them surpasses not the other. One thing and another are alike in him; what he wills to be done---what his wisdom devises, and his goodness thinks meet---he has power to do it; but it is not so with men. 2. Whatsoever is possible and may be done, that God is able to do; but there are many things possible, and may be done, whilk men are not able to do. It is possible of stones to raise up children to Abraham, yet man cannot do this; but whatsoever is possible, and may be done, that God can do. Then, if whatsoever is possible, and may be done, God can do it, what needs us to run to another to get it done? If it be a thing we think impossible, why run we to a indirect mean, who cannot do all things possible? and if it be a thing that is possible, why go we not to God with it, who is able to do all? He that sits and rules in heaven, he has fulness of power in him---he can do all things. One creature can do one thing, and another another; one man can advise a thing, and another give counsel how to bring it to pass; a third will give money for it, another will undertake to do the turn, etc.; yet one cannot do all. And when all the creatures are gathered together, there is no fulness in them, there is evermore emptiness to be seen in them and vanity; and especially there is not fulness of power in them all, but only in God. Gather all the creatures together, God can do that whilk they can do all; ay, he can do more than they can do all. Yea, moreover, is there any power in the creature, but that whilk he givesto it? None; for it is in him that all things live, move, and have their being. That
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334 SERMON.
is true in all, whilk our Lord said to Pilate. "When Pilate says to him, ¢ Knowest thou not that I' have power to crucify thee, and I have power to release thee?" Jesus answers him, ¢ Thou couldst have no power at all, except it were given thee from above." So there is no man, who has any power at all to do anything, either for thee or against thee, but as he has power from above. If ye were acquainted with the power of God, [O] but ye would think it to be wonderful ! Ques. What needs you to insist thus upon the power of God, and to tell that his power is in heaven? who is there who doubts of that? Ans. It's true all will profess he is in heaven, and all will profess he has power enough in time of prosperity; but when there comes any distress upon yourselves, or any who belongs to you, or any judgment upon the land, then your faith proves to be exceeding weak in apprehending the power of God. And then it is that our confidence in the power of God should kyth;* for when man cannot help us, then have we the benefit of our confidence in God. Believe this, therefore, that God is in the heavens, and that we have to do with one who is both a gracious and a mighty God; believe it, and make the right use of it. Remember that he who made all things, and upholds them all, he can do this for me also. If it be any comfort for thy soul, or any lust that thou would have overcome, or if it be a deliverance to the kirk, God can do that: he who has now changed the face of the earth, and made it green where it was withered,+ he can change the face of the kirk, and of thy soul also, when he thinks time. And if authority be against the changing of the face of the kirk, in making it to be green again,} he who is in
* Kyth. Appear in action,
Tt was now the month of May.
1 Allthe efforts of the king, at this time, were directed against the work of reformation. In the instructions to the Commissioner, whose appointment was notified to the Privy Council on the 1oth of May, the king, whilst, from politic motives, making some relaxations in favour of the covenanters, instructs the Commissioner to *" admit of no petition against the five articles of Perth," and insists on the town of Edinburgh departing from the covenant as a condition of the restoration to it of the council and session, that had been removed from it; and so on. At the same time, Hamilton
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PSALM. CXXHL I, 2. 335
heaven can help that. Remember that London is als near to him who is in heaven as Scotland is, and so God can fall in upon the heart of the king, and of these who are about him, and let him and them see the right way. And be comforted in this, because the Lord has given evidences of his power already, and has done mickle for his awin glory already: and he who can do that, why can he not do the rest also? If so be that we by our sins hinder him not to work, he will bring it to a consummation and perfection at last. Thirdly. * As the eyes of servants look unto the hand of their master, and as the eyes of a maid looketh unto the hand of her mistress, so our eyes wait upon the Lord our God." This is to express the manner of confidence that a Christian soul or a kirk has in the power of God: even as servants look to the helping hand of their masters, so do they to God. ~Servants, 1 grant, they are always miserable; but they were in another manner of misery then nor they be now, for then they were readily exposed to mickle contempt and to many injuries. Servants then had no power to wear any weapon; but indeed they were used almost as beasts in thraldom everyway; and when they were injured, they might not mint (attempt) to help themselves, but behoved to look only to their masters for help, and complain to them: and so behoved a handmaid to do to her mistress also. 1. Consider that there be two sorts of servants set down here, man-servants and maid-servants; and this is to let us know that both sexes may be confident in God. Not only may men be confident in the power of God, but even women also, who are more frail and feeble. Not only may women mourn to God for wrongs done to them, and have repentance for sin, but they may be confident in God also. And therefore see, in that rehearsal of believers and cloud of witnesses, not only is the faith of men noted and commended by the Spirit of God, but also the faith of women: and
-was instructed to ¢ declare, that, if there be not sufficient strength within the kingdom to force the refractory to obedience, power shall come from England, and that myself will come in person with them, being resolved to hazard my life rather than suffer authority to be contemned." Burn:t's Memoirs of the House of Hamilton.
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336 SERMON.
among the judges, Deborah, Jael, etc., are commended as worthies, and courageous in God. And the women also in the new Testament are noted for their following of Christ; when Judas had sold him, Peter forsworn him, and when Pilate and the priests had condemned him to the shameful death of the cross,---even when all fled from him, then they followed him. And therefore we must not judge of grace as we do of nature; for there may be Christian courage in women as well as in men, albeit courage be not so natural to them: and they may adhere to Christ even when men forsake him.
2. Ye may perceive here, that by the relation that is between masters and servants ye may know the relation between God and his people. A master by the disposition that he has to his servant may know in some measure what is God's disposition towards him. A kind master will be loath to see his servant wronged, and he will count that whilk is done to his servant to be done to himself; so the Lord, be will not suffer his children to be wronged by the world; he says to Saul, ¢ Saul, why persecutest thou me?" And the servant also may be confident by that whilk his master does to him. If he be a dutiful servant and faithful, then he will look for his fee and his reward from his master; but if any serve not their master, they can look for no good thing from them. So if we serve God faithfully, he sall bless us with all good things; and we sall be saved by him, and protected from all ills.
3. But the special thing that we have to learn from this [is],---If we would have confidence in the power and providence of God in the time of our trouble, we must be dutiful servants to God. He who is not a dutiful and ane honest servant to his master dare neither look for his hand to help him in his distress, nor yet to reward him; nor yet a maid who has not done her duty to her mistress. But if so be that they have been faithful and honest servants, and has done their duty, and has to do with good masters also, then they fear not but to be defended and rewarded. And therefore, as ye would wish the Lord's hand to help you any way,
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PSALM CXXIIIL I, 2. 337
strive to serve him faithfully; and if we will do that, then we may look confidently for help from him.
There is a twofold looking to our master. First, there is a looking to his eye; secondly, there is a looking to his hand. ~We must look to his hand indeed, to help and to reward us, but we must also look to his eye, to get direction from it. "When thou looks to God's eye, and by his eye knows what his mind is, and runs to the obeying of that, then thou may also look to his hand, that he will help thee, and reward thee, as he sees meet. There be many servants who look to the hand of their master, to reward and to help them, who look not to their eye also to direct them, and so do we to God also; but we should look to both. And therefore, if we would have help from God in trouble, or if we would have any good thing from him, let us be dutiful servants to him. And to the end that we may be dutiful servants to God, there are three things required of us. 1. Continual attendance upon God. We should still wait as in the presence of the Lord, set ourselves continually as in his sight; but especially we should be present at his courtdays upon his Sabbaths. Say this, Sall I profess to be one of his vassals, and he has ordained them to convene to his court-day, and when he calls upon his vassals, sall he miss me? Men who has many vassals, albeit some of them be away, they will not be missed, but it is not so with God; he will miss the meanest of his vassals: and therefore resolve, I will keep his court-days, and I will always attend, as in his presence. 2. If we will be dutiful servants to God, obedience is required of us, and that great obedience. Disobedience is a thing that becomes not a servant; for let us wait upon God as we will, if we do not the thing that he bids us do, it is all for nought. We must do the will of God, but not our awin: so we must be obedient servants, not looking to our own will, but to our master's will only. This is a question disputed by Aulus Gellius and some others, If a servant be employed about a matter, and he has gotten direction from his master to do it after such a manner, and after he has gotten direction the servant sees another way to do it, how it may be greater credit and honour
3
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3 38 SERMON.
to his master, and greater gain also, the question is,--- Whether of the two ways he ought to follow: whether that whilk his master directed him, or that whilk he has seen to be best for his master's honour, and for his profit also? But there needs not such as this here; for it is sure that it is evermore greatest honour for God, and will be greatest contentment to thy own soul, to do that whilk God has commanded: and there is no obedience but that. 3. Faithfulness is required also. And ye sall take up this faithfulness in two parts. First, in uprightness. That is, when thy mind bears thee witness that, in that whilk thou does, thou art seeking thy master's honour only; albeit, indeed, thou may have other by-thoughts in anything thou does, yet thou censures these, and goes on in doing that, and cares not albeit thou should be disgraced in the doing of it, if so be that God be honoured. We would think, when we are suffering anything for a kind friend, O if he knew of this, he would not let it be unrewarded: but God knows what we do for him, and so will reward it. And if we be the servants of God, we must make a count of everything that we do; and therefore we must be upright, and do that whilk God bids us do, albeit all should be displeased with us for the doing of it, yea, albeit that thou thyself should be displeased. And remember that when we are doing that whilk God commands us, none will be displeased with us but these who are the enemies of God: and why may not we, (ay, we must), displease God's enemies? And remember that these who oppose against thee in doing the commandment of God, they must stand before him to be judged. The second thing required in faithfulness is diligence. For what, albeit ane were never so upright, and wronged not their master, and yet be not diligent in doing that whilk they should do, they cannot be called faithful. And albeit a servant were never so diligent, if his diligence be only for himself, then he is not faithful. Whatever task the Lord has given you, do it uprightly, and whatever talent the Lord has bestowed upon you, use it diligently for your master's honour.
If we would wait upon God at all times and in all places, and be obedient to his will and commandments, and be up
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PSALM CXXIIL I, 2. 239
right and diligent and so faithful servants to him, and thus look to the eye of God to direct us, we might then confidently look to his hand also: and indeed he has a large hand, both to reward us, and also to save us.
There be two things we must look to here, and also beware of. 1. Slaves, they serve their masters more for fear nor for love, and for reward more nor the master's honour. We cannot indeed get fear altogether put away, but see that we have love also to stir us up to serve God. And we may also serve for a reward, and have our eye to it, but we must not think that that reward is due to us for our service, but that it is freely conferred to us of the free grace of God: and see that thou look more to the honour of God in that whilk thou does than to the reward. 2. Eye-service is also censured in servants; that is, they will be busy when their master or mistress are looking to them, but when their back is turned, then they slack of that. They would work a sore work, if they would aye work as they do at that time when their master is beholding them. I would have you to be - eye-servants in that respect, and to be aye busy, because your master's eye is aye looking upon you; but as he looks aye to you, so I would have you to have your eye continually upon him. If we consider this, that God is evermore looking upon us, to see what we are doing, it would be good for us: it would teach us to be upright and diligent, and so to be faithful to him.
Fourthly, There is the continuance of the kirk's confidence. ¢ Until that he have mercy upon us." That is, I will evermore trust in God, I will still pray to him, and continue in prayer, till he open his plentiful hand, and give me that whilk I seek. Whatever thou be seeking of God, either for the kirk of God or for thy awin soul, wait on whill (till) thou get all that thou would have. As a dog when he has got one morsel of meat, he looks aye up to get more till he be full, so hold thou thy eye still upon God till thou be fully satisfied. Beloved, there is a time when the Lord uses to exercise his kirk and children with afflictions, and a time when he uses to shew mercy to his people, and to deliver them from these afflictions. Before the time that the
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340 SERMON.
Lord has appointed, he will not shew them the favour of deliverance, but when the time of deliverance is once come, then there is no more delay of it: and all that time that he afflicts us we should have our eyes upon him for deliverance. There was a time when the posterity of Abraham was afflicted in Egypt, and it continued whill the set time; and when the time was come, there was no more delay, but that same night they were delivered. And there was a time als appointed for them to be in Babel, and when that time was expired, presently they were set free. Sometimes the Lord tells beforehand how long the captivity of his people sall remain, to let us know that he could tell it always; but most ordinarily he reveals it to none, but keeps it secret to himself. And therefore all the matter for us is, that all the time, till the Lord crown the work of our deliverance, we should have our eyes upon him, and wait upon him till he have mercy upon us: and it was for this end that I did choise (choose) this text at this time.
The Lord has begun to be merciful to us, and to bring back our captivity in some degree; and therefore let us still have our eye upon him for help, till he perfyte the work that he has begun. Remember of that whilk is written Isaiah Ixii.,® ¢ Ye that make mention of the Lord, keep no silence, nor give him no rest, till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise of the earth." What is the grace or mercy that ye look for, and are seeking from the Lord? Is it not that God would establish Jerusalem, and make it the beauty of the land? Now has Jerusalem been the beauty of the land thir years by-gane? The Lord, indeed, has now begun to draw some draughts of it; but thir years past it has been the deformity, the blot, and the division that was in the land. The kirk of Scotland thir years bygane has been the shame of Scotland; and all the talking that has been has been of ministers. Now this should be our desire, that the kirk may be the beauty of the land again. The Lord, he has begun to draw some draughts of the kirk's beauty again; but if we insist not in our prayers,
* Verses 6, 7.
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PSALM CXXIIIL I, 2. 341
the Lord will stand still, or make it als ill, or worse than it was again. Now all of us should be of these who make mention of the Lord; and therefore let us still cry to the Lord, and give him no rest, no Sabbath nor no day, but let ilk day be a Sabbath for that, till the Lord make the kirk of Scotland to be the beauty of Scotland. The kingdom of itself, indeed, is not very glorious, but he may make his kirk to be glorious in it, and make his kirk here to be the praise of the earth again; and he can also make the kingdom glorious because of the glory of the kirk. And ye who are women, be like to that woman of Canaan, go often to your knees, and pray to God, and take not ane answer; although the Lord seem to refuse you at the first, yet insist still, and ye sall get such ane answer and a commendation as she gat.
Will not God avenge himself when the ambition, pride, insolency of the enemies is come to a height? Then it is a fit time for the Lord to work; as it is Ps. xii.,* when the enemies are begun to speak proudly, then it is time for him to arise and lend his foes a rap. No, we needed not to doubt, but if we were als far humbled before God as the enemies has exalted themselves, but the Lord should shew mercy to us. But if so be that we turn back again to our sins, or turn away from prayer, this is the very way to make the Lord to turn away from us; but forsake sin, and insist in prayer to God, and he sall come. And marvel not albeit he come not at the first cry to us, for many a time has he cried upon us and we have not heard him. But let us endure in prayer, and be fervent both in private and public, and then there is no question but the Lord sall hear us, and sall stretch out his hand to help us, for our comfort, and for the good and comfort of the generations that sall follow after us. Whilk the Lord grant may be done, for Jesus Christ's sake, To whom, etc.
* Ver: 3-5.
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[MAY 20, 1638.] [AFTERNOON.] PREFACE.
The readiest way for keeping religion in the land, and for continuing with us the pure service and worship of God, wherein the Lord only delights, were for us to delight ourselves in the exercises of religion and of the service and worship of God. If so be that we delight in them with a spiritual delight, and testify it in ane outward observation of the times and means of his service and worship, then this is a token that God will continue them with us; for God never took away religion and the means of his service and worship by no violence yet, when this was done. But on the other part again, let the greatest in the land join their power for continuing of religion, and the wisest in the land their wisdom, and all that they can, if so be in the meantime that people have no delight in religion, nor keep not the exercises of God's public worship, religion sall be tane away in despite of them all. Ps. cii.,,* It is shewn as a reason there why the Lord will arise and have mercy upon Sion, ‘"" Because," says he, "thy servants take pleasuré in the stones, and favour the dust thereof." That is, they love Sion, and the service and worship of God, whilk is there. ‘When they came to a height of delighting in Sion, then it was time for the Lord to deliver them, and to restore Sion to her former beauty. As men who has any whom they love well, they delight to be where they are, so when the servants of God delight to be where he is, then it is a token
¥ Ver. 1314
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PREFACE. 343
that they love him, and he them, and that he will bide with them. I speak this the rather because I can see but little appearance that God sall bide with you, or that his worship sall remain here. Ye have gone als far on as ye can in a profession, and in confession of your faith, in making a covenant with God, and swearing and subscribing to it; and yet, for all that, the most part of you has no more delight in the means of the service and worship of God than ye had before. This has ever been your fault; and I have been striving with you for it these twenty years, since | came among you,* and yet the most part of you who are the commons never mends a whit in coming to the house of God on the Sabbath, and ye who are their masters have no care to bring them here. Ye seemed to frequent the kirk somewhat better two or three days, but now ye are fallen als slack as ever ye were. I say, for als great hope as ye have that the service and worship of God sall be continued with you, the Lord sall, for all that, take it from you if ye continue thus. I know, indeed, that God is merciful, and for the respect that he has to some few of his secret ones, he will spare very long, and will continue in the means of his worship; but when the means of his worship are thus despised, as they are by you, how can it be thought that he will continue them? The Lord, I will assure you, he will give you over to delusions except ye amend your lives, and make more of the means of God's worship nor ever ye have done, and especially learn to amend them in this point of sanctifying the whole Sabbat h. And therefore let us, etc.
*The author had been at this time fwenty-four years minister at Leuchars, as he told the Assembly of this year, when his translation t o Edinburgh was under discussion. How, then, are we to account for the discrepancy? Is it because he is here speaking in round numbers? or may it not be because the first years of his ministry, which are left out of accoun were years during which he was a stranger to divine grace, and took no interest in the spiritual welfare of his people? On this latter suppositi on, which appears not at all improbable, the date of his conversion by the prea ching of Bruce may at last be approximately ascertained.
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344 SERMON.
SERMON. Psarm'exxms. . '4.*
Ye heard the profession that is made, in the name of the kirk, of her confidence in God, ---that in heavy distress she lifts up her eyes to God. And the ground of her confidence is, because ‘ God is in the heavens,"---he is a majestic and a mighty God, and does whatsoever he will. Ye heard also of the manner of her confidence. Even as servants of all sexes looks to the hand of their masters and mistresses for help and relief, or for a reward, so the kirk looks also towards God's hand. And then there is the continuance of this her confidence,---she will never give it over. It is nothing to wait on, and to seek earnestly, for a while, but this is the praise of on-waiting and confidence, to wait on in earnestness and in constancy till the Lord be gracious; and to wait still upon him, and to cry aye to him, till he show that same particular mercy whilk the kirk or a Christian desires.
In this part of the psalm he propones his petition to God in name of the kirk. If so be that we put our confidence in God, and have our eyes bended upon him to receive directions from him, and wait upon him till his time, and in this time pray to the Lord that he would be gracious and show mercy, we may then be confident. And the reason he gives for putting up this petition is, because the kirk has readily (likely) ado with enemies who use to be at ease and in prosperity in the world; and when they are in such a case, then they labour by all means to breed trouble and adversity to the kirk of God. And this makes them to be proud and haughty; and they declare their pride by their contempt and mocking of the servants of God. And this their contempt and mocking, it comes to a very great
* « Have mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy upon us; for we are exceedingly filled with contempt. Our soul is exceedingly filled with the scorning of those that are at ease, and with the contempt of the proud."